So I'm completely willing to admit that I'm a huge geek when it comes to video games & sci-fi/fantasy stuff. I felt like I wasn't standing up to my geek standards when I didn't see Tron in theaters. So I rented it this past weekend and gave it a watch. Now don't get me wrong, it was a very entertaining movie while I was watching it. But the more and more I actually think about the movie the more I feel that it was an unnecessary waste of time. They really didn't make any drastic changes from the original movie. I mean I know its a follow up to the original by following flynn's son. But look at the formula of the first story: Man gets sucked into computer world, man has to fight his way out with the aid of a program. And for the second story: man gets sucked into computer world trying to find his dad, man has to fight his way out with the aid of a program. Its the SAME story!!! Now your following the kid as he does exactly what the father did in the first movie! That smells desperately close to a remake to me.
Now I'm not against remakes. If you think you can redo a story and give it a twist, make it more appealing to a different audience then be my guest. But when you make a carbon copy of something and just upgrade the graphics/effects I feel like its a major waste of time and money for someone who has seen the original. Sure targeting it at the younger demographics that haven't seen it before will get them interested in the story. But why not just re-release the original? I mean are we going to remake star wars episode 4 in 10 years with a whole new cast and better graphics? NO! Because the story would be exactly the same and theres nothing wrong with not having your movie being 90% CGI. A perfect example of a good remake is Battle Star Galactica. The original show only existed for 1 season and had gained a huge fan base. In 2004 someone decided that they wanted to remake the series. They changed some major story arcs, changed sex of characters to give interactions a different feel. It pays homage to the original but yet is its own entity. I wish more producer/directors would do this when they decide to remake something.
Anyways back to Tron, I had a friend tell me that it's just a giant Daft Punk music video. I don't entirely agree to that. Yes a majority, if not all of the music is done by daft punk. Which I'm surprised to say i liked. I'm not known for being a Daft Punk supporter. I think its a good movie in its own right. Great story, awesome effects, a fun watch. But they could have done so much more with it. Dive more into the world of the grid, its such a vast and interesting world they created yet you barely get to see any of it. So for anyone who has seen the original theres really no point in watching it. For those who haven't seen the original, give either a watch. Seeing one over the other really wont effect the story at all. Your Humble Host, signing off.
About Me
- Danny Boy
- Born in Venice Beach California, Danny O'Donnell was exposed to the "oddities" of society from a very early age. After coming to Sin City when i was 14 only to have affirmed the things i had learned walking the Venice boardwalk. I have traveled through many different scenes. Punk, Greaser, Metal head, Goth, Raver, & Indie. I can assign all of those to me and yet none at all. I find myself a wanderer between the tribes. Always looking and taking the little bits I see to make an over all me. All of this combined with being raised by my single Irish Catholic mother has created a unique individual, or so I've been told. I have deep rooted passions in theatre, live music, and film. Anything that has to do with people expressing their creative souls to the world. Contact me via email at whenvegasattacks@gmail.com
It's a shame you didn't get to see it in the theater because the 3D effects were superb. The movie is not meant to be a remake but as a sequel to the original, although if you had not seen the original movie it works well as its own stand alone. I really enjoyed the fact that they tried to keep it visually similar to the original movie (which was cutting edge at that time) but incorporated the use of very modern techniques to do so. There are very few movies I can say I insisted on seeing opening night and this was one of them and I'm very glad I did. I hope it doesn't lose a lot going to small screen.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the "woulda, shoulda, coulda". However, I remember seeing and loving it. When I got all excited, my wife asked (as always) "What's it about?". My response, "I don't even remember but it's AWESOME!" Point is there are some movies that are just eye-candy. Nobody expects horror or porn movies to have a complex story, plot twists, and deep characters. Sometimes you get a rare gem that has both (new BSG or Firefly/Serenity)but if you see a commercial for Tron and say "I'll bet that's gonna have a GREAT story!", you're fooling yourself. Tron was upgraded exactly were it should've been, accept what it is and you will not be disappointed.
ReplyDeleteMisquote in the above post. To specify, I saw the original as a kid and was excited to see the remake now :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the second Tron. Saw the first when it came out as a kid. Didn't see any reason to make another one. Just someone else too lazy to come up with something unique. Another Hollywood way to rip us off. So I agree with the blogger. There was no need for this remake. That said, I'll still watch it for the childhood flashbacks...
ReplyDeleteStan